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April 2, 1999
Heidelberg/Creo Donation
Enhances GATF Workshops
Supporting the Graphic Arts Technical Foundation's (GATF) commitment
to education and training for the graphic arts industry, Creo Products
Inc. and Heidelberg Prepress installed a Heidelberg/Creo Trendsetter™
3244 at the Foundation's Technical Center.
$25 million worth of equipment is currently housed within GATF's prepress,
press, and other laboratories and centers to ensure that people who attend
educational workshops and training programs benefit from state-of-the-art
technology for printing, packaging, and publishing industries. "This
equipment has been supplied on a contribution or loan basis by an extraordinary
number of vendors in our industry who are unfailingly generous and farsighted
in their support of GATF," said George Ryan, GATF President. "Creo
and Heidelberg are not only leaders in their field but have been long-time,
dedicated supporters of the Foundation's commitment to the printing industry."
Because they recognize the Foundation's technical capabilities, and share
its commitment to the industry, Creo feels a shared responsibility to
help keep GATF on the frontier of technology for its members. With more
than 800 installations worldwide, Creo and Heidelberg are focused on providing
digital prepress solutions to the graphic arts industry.
The Heidelberg/Creo joint-venture addition is a milestone. It closes
the gap in delivering a truly integrated and practical production system
covering prepress, press, and postpress .
The Heidelberg/Creo Trendsetter is equipped with SQUAREspot™, a
revolutionary thermal imaging technology patented by Creo. Thermal imaging
applies focused infrared energy from a laser diode to the surface coating
of heat-sensitive media. The media, be it a plate, proof, or film, is
exposed only when the laser energy reaches a certain threshold. Creo SQUAREspot
technology uses a unique square-shaped laser spot that exhibits virtually
no gradation in energy. The uniform application of laser energy makes
the spot extremely predictable and consistent. Its square shape enables
exposed spots to be precisely knit together to form any shape of final
halftone dot.
The benefits of imaging with SQUAREspot include higher quality, higher
resolution output as well as greater consistency and repeatability than
other imaging methods. Most thermal media can also be handled in daylight
environments without the risk of exposure damage. This all adds up to
fewer plate remakes, greater process control in production, a reduction
in time spent on makeready, and less downtime in the pressroom –
and higher productivity.
Training on the Trendsetter will be incorporated into the Foundation's
hands-on training programs such as Computer-to-Plate (CTP), Sheetfed/Web
Offset Press Operating, and Orientation to the Graphic Arts.
When not utilized for classroom demonstrations, the Trendsetter will
be vital to the production of various GATF ads and marketing materials
to inform the industry about products and services. The experience, skills,
and knowledge acquired by GATF staff while operating the Trendsetter will
be shared with the industry through publications, training, and member
support services.
For a free catalog of GATF training programs, e-mail: info@gatf.org
